Gallery: Staff Picks: Our Favorite Pies and Slices of 2013

The Spicy Spring from Prince Street Pizza, NYC

I think my favorite slice of 2013 is the square slice with pepperoni at Prince Street Pizza. It has a name that I can't recall, but I do remember the pepperoni is meaty and crunchy, the cheese is properly oozy without overwhelming the rest of the slice, and the crust is light and crisp and baked all the way through every time. —Ed Levine, Founder of Serious Eats

[Photograph: Robyn Lee]

The Famous Original A from Paulie Gee's, NYC

I'm sorry if I'm tooting my own horn here, but the best slice I ate in 2013 is the one that's missing from this pizza. This is a 'Famous Original A' from the secret menu at Paulie Gee's. It means a lot to me because it's the Ghost of Pizza Past, Present, and Future all baked into one symbolic pizza. Find out why, and catch my other favorites of 2013 »——Adam Kuban, Slice founder and occasional contributor

The Prince Perfection from Prince Street Pizza, NYC

I’ve learned to love a New York slice, but as a born Chicagoan, I’m hard-wired to occasionally crave a breadier version. For that reason (and the fact that it’s dangerously close to SEHQ), I'm a big fan of the the “Prince Perfection” Sicilian slice at Prince Street Pizza. It has fresh mozzarella layered beneath a blanket of thick tomato sauce, reminding me a bit of the stuffed pies I loved as a kid. The crust is crispy and dimpled on the bottom, and chewy and hole-y on top. Nothing fancy here, but sometimes, simplicity is bliss. —Jamie Feldmar, Managing Editor

[Photograph: Adam Kuban]

Margherita from Mozzeria, San Francisco

When I eat pizza, I only eat really good pizza. Or so it seems—when I look back at my pizza noshings of 2013, I see only whole pie, artisanal, upscale stuff. Part of this I blame on SF and its almost complete lack of slice joints (no, Pizza Orgasmica, you're not enough). But regardless, that made it hard to choose a favorite. The pies at Mozzeria get the award for most improved. Everything about the place seems to be getting better, and that includes the cheese they make in house. —Carrie Vasios Mullins, Editor of Serious Eats: Sweets

[Photograph: Seth Mazow]

Margherita from Tribute Pizza, San Diego

In a year that included pilgrimages to Phoenix and NYC, my best pizza of 2013 was delivered through the happenstance of Instagram. A few likes and comments between us and I suddenly found myself at San Diego's Coffee & Tea Collective with Tribute Pizza's Matt Lyons. His pizza was astounding. Slathered with Bianco DiNapoli organic crushed tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, pecorino with fresh basil and olive oil atop a substantial crust that was hard to believe came from a table top deck oven.

The Applicious from S&J's Woodfired Pizza, Atlanta

My favorite pie of 2013 was the one I ended up eating the most often. (And trust me, multiple/return visits are rare for a lot of us “professional” food reviewers.) It took me a while to track down S&J’s Woodfired Pizza, since their entire operation exists as a 6x12-foot trailer that gets dragged around to festivals, events, and private parties all over Atlanta. But now that I’m tapped in to their semi-regular route, I can’t get enough. I love the seasonally-dependent rotation of toppings, but the Applicious (with goat feta, applewood smoked bacon, apple chunks, and pesto) never fails to satisfy. Time your wait in line just right, and you can shoot the breeze with owners Sarah and Jonathan for a couple of minutes after they slide a fresh pie into the Forno Bravo and then dive into your still-steaming slice within 60 seconds of it being pulled out. Say what you will about more fancypants gourmet pizza boutiques and feel free to nerd out over the proper amount of char and microbubbling, but that kind of immediacy and intimacy, my friends, is what pizza is supposed to be about. —Todd Brock, Slice contributor

The Pomodori from Bufad, Philadelphia

The dreamiest slice I had this year was definitely Bufad's Pomodori pie. Sitting at my desk on a snow-covered Philly night, I can only reminisce about the time I slid this light summery slice in my mouth. With creamy Burrata, Kensington-grown heirloom tomatoes, and fresh basil on a soft crust, I'd sell my last candy cane for just a bite. —Kate Axelrod, Slice contributor

Pepperoni Slice from Buddy's, Detroit

I spend a good deal of time in Detroit, so I don't know why I'd never had Buddy's pizza before this year. Now it's on the top of my must-eat list every time I go back. Their pepperoni slice is the platonic ideal of pan pizza: super crisp, almost deep-fried underbelly, crunchy, chewy, focaccia-like hole structure, and of course, those crispy blackened cheese bits around the edges. It's almost enough to make this New Yorker concede that perhaps his home turf isn't the be all end all when it comes to pizza. Almost :) Check out Adam's great review for some more details. —J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, Chief Creative Officer

Margherita from Una Pizza Napoletana, San Francisco

I don't get to Una Pizza Napoletana as often as I should (I got spoiled with Motorino delivery when I lived in New York and driving one neighborhood over is so much effort.) But that's sad, especially because Anthony Mangieri makes a stunningly delicious pizza, with a soft, pillowy crust that has an unusual hint of real sour amazing-bread flavor. The classic Margherita is a delicate, beautiful thing. —Maggie Hoffman, Editor of Serious Eats: Drinks

[Photo: Carey Jones]

Plain Pie from Totonno's, NYC

When Totonno's reopened this year after Hurricane Sandy shut its doors, it was as beautiful a sight as any that New York was coming back. And call me crazy, but I think the pizza's better now than it was before the storm (I'm not the only one who thinks so). I've enjoyed Totonno's every time I've gone, but 2013 is the year it became my perfect pizza parlor.

I also have to give an honorable mention to my neighborhood favorite Rizzo's, which made an impressive debut on the Lower East Side. Here's one for super-thin crust. —Max Falkowitz, Editor of Serious Eats: New York

The Hellboy from Paulie Gee's, NYC

Paulie Gee's has quickly become my go to friends-in-town-and-they-want-pizza place. And I can't set foot in there without ordering a Hellboy. —Paul Cline, Serious Eats Web Developer

Clam Pizza from Franny's, NYC

I don't like to play favorites, but let's be real. Franny's Clam Pizza is off-the-hook amazing. Fresh, briny clams, a bright hit of parsley, and some hot chilies are apparently all it takes to send me into throes of ecstasy. I'd say more, but really you should just get on the train (or plane) and go eat it. —Niki Achitoff-Gray, Associate Editor/Editor of Slice

[Photograph: Niki Achitoff-Gray]

The Anchovy, Caper, and Olive Pie from Barboncino, NYC

This is a really tough one—I've eaten a lot of pizza this year, especially lately (when the temperature drops I'm even more likely to start craving bread and cheese and any iteration thereof). But, after some serious consideration, I think I'm going to have to go with Barboncino—specifically their anchovy, caper, and olive pie (I don't have a photo; pictured above is actually their Margherita).

In lots of ways, that choice has more to do with me than it does with the actual pizza...but what choice doesn't? The chewy, wood-fired crust they get is pretty great; I like salt, especially the umami-saltiness that brined foods have; I'm a lazy person and creature of habit both, and Barboncino is super nearby; it's a nice restaurant to enjoy a meal at, but won't break the bank. Most importantly, every single time I've been there I've had that perfect moment, where all the elements of a good meal come together in just the right way, and everyone seems immensely interesting and is telling the best stories and everything is wonderful. So for 2013, my best Slice (or pie, or night, as the case may be) goes to Barboncino. —Kate Andersen, Slice Contributing Editor

[Photograph: Adam Kuban]

“Deluxe" Focaccia from Avec, Chicago

I went back and forth about whether this actually counted as pizza, but since I already Avec classic has been on the menu for years, but it wasn’t until this year that I got my first taste. It’s a essentially a circular slab of focaccia, which is sliced in half horizontally. Taleggio cheese and ricotta is slathered in the middle, and then the two sides are rejoined. It’s as crunchy and creamy as it sounds, and all the better for it. —Nick Kindelsperger, Editor of Serious Eats: Chicago

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